Tuesday 7 December 2010
Postcard from Hallmark Virus Hoax
Friday 1 October 2010
FBI arrests more than 80 cyber criminals after computer virus siphons $3m from U.S. accounts
'The Zeus Trojan allegedly allowed the hackers, from thousands of miles away, to get their hands on other people's money - with far less exertion than a safe cracker or bank robber'
Source:www.dailymail.co.uk
Thursday 12 August 2010
Online banking virus Zeus v3 fleeces thousands
Tuesday 2 March 2010
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I've just been reading some AMAZING statistics
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3. 85% of people who start to read a Making Money
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4. 83% of people who start to use a Making Money
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on the application)
5. 94% of people NEVER start at the beginning of
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Regards,
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Thursday 18 June 2009
How to spot an Email Hoax
There are thousands of email hoaxes moving around the Internet at any given time. Some may be the latest email hoaxes around. Others may be mutated versions of hoax messages that have travelled the Internet for years. These email hoaxes cover a range of subject matter, including:
- Supposedly free giveaways in exchange for forwarding emails.
- Bogus virus alerts.
- False appeals to help sick children.
- Pointless petitions that lead nowhere and accomplish nothing.
- Dire, and completely fictional, warnings about products, companies, government policies or coming events.
Probably the most obvious of these indicators is a line such as "Send this email to everyone in your address book". Hoax writers want their material to spread as far and as fast as possible, so almost every hoax email will in some way exhort you to send it to other people. Some email hoaxes take a more targeted approach and suggest that you send the email to a specified number of people in order to collect a prize or realize a benefit.
Another indicator is that hoaxes tend not to provide checkable references to back up their spurious claims. Genuine competitions, promotions, giveaways or charity drives will usually provide a link to a company website or publication. Real virus warnings are likely to include a link to a reputable virus information website. Emails containing Government or company policy information are likely to include references to checkable sources such as news articles, websites or other publications.
A third indicator is often the actual language used. Email hoax writers have a tendency to use an emotive, "over-the-top" style of writing peppered with words and phrases such as "Urgent", "Danger", "worst ever virus!!", "sign now before it's too late" and so on, often rendered in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS for added emphasis. Paragraphs dripping with pathos speak of dying children; others "shout" with almost rabid excitement about free air travel or mobile phones. As well, some email hoaxes try to add credibility by using highly technical language.
Before forwarding an email, ask yourself these questions:
- Does the email ask you to send it to a lot of other people?
- Does the email fail to provide confirmation sources?
- Is the language used overly emotive or highly technical?
Source: www.hoax-slayer.com
Wednesday 25 February 2009
The Hallmark e-card virus - A Hoax?
Is The Hallmark e-card virus a Hoax?
There are various opinions on this subject, some caliming that it is a hoax, others that it is true. This blog only provides information from reputable sources. Below is an article on the subject from Web User, UK's best selling internet magazine.
Virus hidden in Hallmark e-card
"Surfers should beware of opening emails purporting to be from the popular card company Hallmark as they may carry a virus.
Security firm MessageLabs has intercepted emails from 25,000 IP addresses containing a new virus that arrives from the sender postcards@hallmark.com with the subject line, 'You've received a Hallmark E-Card!'
Along with the email there is an attachment entitled postcard.zip. If opened a Trojan virus will attach itself to the hosts computer and recruit it for a botnet, a web of infected computers.
According to MessageLabs the emails were sent in bursts with a surge of the malicious emails detected on 23 July.
This latest bout of malware is a variation of the Storm botnet which popularised postcard/e-card attacks last year. Web User reported on a similar scam just last month.
"As long as recipients continue to fall for these old tricks, malware authors and spammers will continue to use them," according to Matt Sergeant of MessageLabs."
The following is what Hallmark themselves have to say on the subject.
"How to retrieve legitimate Hallmark e-cards and identify fradulent e-mails
These fraudulent e-mails do not originate from Hallmark. The Hallmark name has been used by a third party. All legitimate Hallmark e-cards can be retrieved at www.hallmark.com/getecard with the code provided. A legitimate Hallmark e-card will include the name of the sender, a confirmation number and does not include an attachment to download.
Additional Information
Downloading attachments in these fradulent e-mails could download a virus onto a computer that compromises personal data. Here are steps consumers can take to reduce the chances of this happening:
Delete the e-mail without opening it.
If you have opened it and want to forward it to us, send it to abuse@hallmark.com. Due to the large amount of e-mail we receive at that address we will not be able to reply to your e-mail, but we will investigate. Then delete the e-mail from both your inbox and your sent folder. If you click on the link in the bogus e-mail, you will launch a Trojan virus. This virus installs an Internet Relay (IRC) chat client and causes the infected computer to connect to an IRC channel. Attackers then use that connection to remotely command your machine for the purpose gathering your personal information. An example of this virus is the Zapchast virus.
If you use Windows XP and Internet Explorer you should visit update.microsoft.com to update your browser and operating system. Then you will be less likely to be affected by the virus.
Report suspicious e-mail to your e-mail service provider so they can take action.
File a complaint at http://www.ic3.gov/.
If you are unsure if you’ve received a legitimate Hallmark E-Card, don't click on a link in the e-mail. Instead locate the EG number in the e-mail and use our E-Card pickup.
What Hallmark is doing:
Contacting the Internet providers identified as the source of the spam requesting that they shut down the imposters.
Working with Microsoft to include the virus code in their phishing filter to protect consumers who use their web browser and e-mail client software.
Working with anti-virus software corporations to get the virus code added to virus definition updates.
Reviewing Hallmark's E-Card notification and pickup procedures.
Educating consumers about how to avoid E-Card abuse.
How to tell if a Hallmark E-Card notification is real:
Hallmark e-card e-mails do not include any attachments. To be safe if you receive an e-card notification with an attachement delete it immediately, then empty your "trash" or "deleted e-mails" from your email client.
The sender's first name and last name will appear in the subject line. If you do not recognize the name of the person sending the E-Card, do not click on any links in the e-mail. Delete the e-mail.
The notification will include a link to the E-Card on Hallmark.com as well as a URL that can be pasted into a browser.
The URL will begin with http://hallmark.com/ followed by characters that identify the individual E-Card. Hover your mouse over the words "click here" in your e-mail. If you do not see the URL above, it is not a legitimate Hallmark E-Card.
Hallmark E-Cards are not downloaded and they are not .exe files.
In addition, Hallmark.com will never require an E-Card recipient to enter a user name or password nor any other personal information to retrieve an E-Card.
If you are unsure if you’ve received a legitimate Hallmark E-Card, don't click on a link in the e-mail. Instead locate the EG number in the e-mail. Then go to hallmark.com, click on the "Cards & E-Cards tab," and then on "Pick Up an E-Card" link from the dropdown menu and enter the EG number to retrieve your card.
E-mail Safety Tips:
Don’t open e-mails you know are spam. A code embedded in spam advertises that you opened the e-mail and confirms your address is valid, which in turn can generate more spam.
Don't open e-mails from unknown senders.
Don’t open attachments in e-mails unless you are expecting to receive one. If you receive an attachment that you are not expecting, even if it’s from someone you know, first read the e-mail and make sure the attachment is legitimate. If you’re still not sure, call or e-mail the sender to confirm, but do not reply to the original e-mail.
Don't click on links in e-mails that appear to be from financial companies (PayPal, banks, credit card companies, etc.) that direct you to verify or confirm account details. Instead, call the company if you are concerned about your account."
Wednesday 21 January 2009
'Worm virus' hits 9m computers
The malicious program, variously known as Conficker, Downadup or Kido, was discovered in October 2008.
On its blog pages, online security firm F-Secure estimates the worm has now infected 8.9 million machines globally. However, the Finland-based firm recently suggested that the "worm virus" may be a dud.
The virus does not appearing to be working as intended, according to F-Secure. Chief security adviser Patrik Runald told PA that its coding suggests a type of bug that alerts computer users to bogus infections on their machines and offers to help by selling antivirus software. Instead, the virus is mostly spreading to little effect - though it may still pose a threat to infected computers.
Microsoft released a security patch to deal with the worm on October 23. However, computers that have not had the latest security patches installed – or which lack up-to-date anti-virus software – remain vulnerable.
"Obviously the best thing you can do - as we stressed back in November - is make sure that Microsoft’s patch is in place on every vulnerable computer on your network," wrote Sophos security expert Graham Cluley on his blog.
"In addition, you should ensure that your anti-virus software is up-to-date."
"Other means of infection include exploitation of weak password policies and unprotected file shares. The easiest way to ensure latest security updates are installed is to enable the Automatic Update feature in Windows. Those that do not use Automatic Updates can go to http://update.microsoft.com.
"We have updated our customers on this threat through the Microsoft Malware Protection Center blog. We’ll continue to provide updates as necessary."
Users can download the security patch for their version of Windows from the following site http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/Bulletin/MS08-067.mspx
Further information on the Conficker worm and how to deal with it can be found here;
http://www.microsoft.com/security/portal/Entry.aspx?Name=Win32/Conficker
Source: msn.com